Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust held the first of what they hope will be several Swift Walks in Llanfyllin over the summer.

As part of a project to hold several walks throughout Montgomeryshire to spot and collect data on returning Swifts, the trust held its first walk in Llanfyllin at The Workhouse.

The scheme has been orchestrated by a collaborative Wildlife Trust project across Powys called Green Connections Powys, which works with community groups, small businesses, landowners and local councils to take action against climate change and biodiversity loss.

The number of Swifts in the area has declined by up to 50% over the last 25 years.

With Swifts usually returning to the area in large numbers throughout April and May, Montgomery Wildlife Trust wants to carry out a number of walks to observe and monitor their activities.

They will be looking for features such as nest sites, feeding hotspots and "screaming" parties.

The data collected on these walks will be collated at the end of the season to help gain a better understanding of breeding Swifts across Powys.

Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust will also be providing the data to town and community councils in the hopes of helping them identify key breeding areas to protect and preserve.

Regarding their first walk in Llanfyllin, a member of the Green Connections Powys team said: 2During our walk, we witnessed a sparrow and swift having a fight.

“Not only that, but to our surprise, the sparrow seemed to win.

“Thankfully the swift managed to escape and appeared to be unharmed.”

Swifts will be in the area for approximately 100 days before flying to the African Sahara throughout July and August.

Green Connections Powys intends to use this short window of time to organise as many walks as possible to raise awareness of the bird and help towns across Montgomeryshire be more friendly to them.

Llanfyllin Men’s Shed have made several bird boxes which have been given to people across the area to put up on houses and buildings.

Future walks and events can be found on the Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust website when they are announced, https://www.montwt.co.uk/events